T.O.F.U. Magazine » oilhttp://www.ilovetofu.ca
there is an alternative.Thu, 26 Feb 2015 21:27:41 +0000en-UShourly1http://wordpress.org/?v=4.1.1BP to pay the true price for fossil fuelshttp://www.ilovetofu.ca/2010/05/03/bp-to-pay-the-true-price-for-fossil-fuels/
http://www.ilovetofu.ca/2010/05/03/bp-to-pay-the-true-price-for-fossil-fuels/#commentsMon, 03 May 2010 16:51:07 +0000http://www.ilovetofu.ca/?p=327Alright, so it’s not 100% vegan-related, but I’m willing to bet it pisses you all off just as much as it does me.

There are so many things in this piece that bother me. So many little bits of corporate bullshit and lingo that just gets under the skin of anyone willing to dig a little deeper than the surface.

First off, there is the PR move to cover the cost, while refusing to acknowledge that BP is partially responsible for the whole disaster in the first place. It’s sly and it serves as just another example of how messed-up our view of our place in the world is:

“The drilling rig was a Transocean drilling rig,” he continued. “It was their rig and their equipment that failed, run by their people and their processes, but our responsibility is the oil and the responsibility is ours to clean it up. And that’s what we’re doing.”

Your responsibility is the oil? I’m sorry, the Earth and plenty of complicated natural processes are responsible for that oil. What you should be claiming responsibility for is the fact that it is now pouring out of the Earth and into plenty of places it shouldn’t be. Of course, that’s the fault of the rig, the equipment, and the people working it, right? BP, where does the money go once all of those folks are done their job? Your hands are just as dirty, so don’t act like you’re doing another company a favour by cleaning up the mess.

Second, the idea that we can even put a price on this whole disaster is horrible, and it only further illustrates how far down the spiral we’ve gone with the concept of money being the all-powerful God. If it seems possible to put a price on a disaster that currently has sea turtles washing-up onshore and fishing shut down from the Mississippi River to the Florida Panhandle, then I’d love to see the math. I think I skipped that day in Calculus. What is the current value of the North American east coast fishery anyway? Can I buy shares in cod or whale futures? If so, I recommend waiting because I think the price is about to drop significantly.

Finally, regardless of who pays the large financial bill (chances are they’ll file it as a charitable donation somehow), we’re all paying the true cost. So, strap-in folks. This is going to get a lot worse before it gets better, and we may see a few more regulations on drilling, a few slaps on the wrists of Corporate Oil, but the Texas tea will keep flowing as long as the money tells it to, and if a few drops spill, well they have an equation for that now.